Page 159 of Reaper and Ruin

He glanced over at me and did a double take when he noticed the expression on my face. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“He’s dead if he follows you, Nyah. Thank him and your friends for leading me back to you, but know I only let them live because of that. They come for you again, I will not be as lenient.”

I didn’t push back. Didn’t argue. I knew his threats weren’t bluffs.

My father never bluffed.

“Just let me have ten minutes,” I whispered to him.

“I’m not an unreasonable man, Nyah.” He paused on the other end of the line. “Ten minutes. Not a second more.”

If my heart hadn’t just been ripped from my body in the most painful of ways, I might have laughed. But there was no humor in this situation.

I turned to Violet. “I have to go home.”

Violet’s eyebrows drew together sharply. “Your father—”

I forced myself to shake my head and to lie to the best friend I’d ever had. “No, it’s not that. My mother is ill. I need to go back and be there for her.”

Violet bit her lip. “Okay, but you’ll be back when she’s well, right?”

Lying to her was the hardest thing I’d ever done in my life. “Sure.”

She hugged me quickly, and I stood, pulling Dax to his feet with me.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

I knew my uncle and my father’s men would follow us, but I didn’t care. I moved past him, and he followed me up the stairs, cheering hockey fans sitting either side of us. The landing where the food and bathrooms were was much quieter, most people saving their snacking and restroom trips for between periods.

I wished that was why I was up here. Wished all we were doing was getting Dax a refill of his fries.

I tugged him to a stop, facing him, staring up at the eyes I’d so easily come to love. “I’m leaving.”

He didn’t hesitate. “You’re tired? I knew this was too much. Come on, let’s get you to the car.”

I shook my head. “No. I’m leaving town.”

He froze. “What do you mean? For the weekend?”

He already knew. I could see it in his eyes.

“No. I’m going home.”

“Your family—”

Again, I knew I had to lie. Because he would come for me if I didn’t. He would never stop coming if he thought I wasn’t there of my own free will. This man would burn the world down for me if I asked him to, and I knew it.

The only problem was, if he tried, he’d only be setting himself alight.

I couldn’t let him do that. I loved him more than that. More than he would ever love me.

His forehead pinched. “If this is about what I said…about forever… If I’m moving too fast…”

I squeezed his fingers. “It’s not about you. It’s about me. I’m broken, Dax. I don’t feel safe here.”

“We’ll go somewhere else!”

I shook my head. “I can’t. It hurts too much. I need to go home. My mom is sick. I need to be there with her.”